Not upheld: account verification and refund procedures complaint against American Express Services Europe Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr J complained that AMEX treated him unfairly by requiring him to upload a bank statement before refunding a credit balance on his credit card account. AMEX explained it needed to verify the bank account details to ensure the refund was returned to the original payment source, as required by its regulatory protocols. Although Mr J had previously provided a bank statement when setting up a direct debit, the specific payment requiring validation in October 2025 was made by debit card, meaning AMEX did not have visible account details from that transaction. The ombudsman did not uphold the complaint, finding that AMEX's verification requirement was reasonable and that the Financial Ombudsman Service should not interfere with a firm's processes and controls.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that AMEX's requirement for verification was justified by regulatory protocols to ensure credit balances are returned to the original payment source. Although Mr J had previously provided bank account details for the direct debit setup, the specific payment requiring validation (October 2025) was made by debit card, which does not provide visible account details to AMEX. The ombudsman acknowledged Mr J's frustration but concluded that AMEX's verification controls were reasonable and that the Financial Ombudsman Service should not interfere with a firm's processes, systems or controls when they appear fair and reasonable in the circumstances.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website